We all pay taxes but we all don’t pay our fair share of taxes, but what the heck, that is a whole different story. What does this have to do with the Minnesota Twins and MLB? Stop by the Don’t Mess with Taxes web site and you can read a recent article called Pro athlete trades get tax relief from IRS .
Month: April 2019
Twins Minor League Players of the Week – Davis & Thorpe
AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos outfielder Jaylin Davis and AAA Rochester left-handed pitcher Lewis Thorpe have been named Twins minor league player and Pitcher of the Week.
In six games for the Blue Wahoos, Davis hit .407 (11-for-27) with three doubles, two home runs, six RBI and a 1.148 OPS.
Davis, 24, and in his fourth season of pro ball was drafted by the Twins in the 24th round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft out of Appalachian State University. Jaylin Malik Davis was expected to be a top 3-4 round talent coming out of Appalachian State University but was unfortunate to tear the labrum in his right shoulder when diving after a ball during his draft season. Davis missed the rest of 2015 getting the shoulder repaired and letting it heal.
Thorpe, 23, made one start for the Red Wings on Tuesday vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, allowing one run on three hits in 8.0 innings while striking out 12 batters for the second straight start. Thorpe got off to a rough starts this season allowing 15 runs in his first two starts that lasted a total of 8.2 innings. For the year Thorpe is 1-2 with a 7.25 ERA in 22.1 innings. 7 of his 8 walks this season were in his first two starts.
Thorpe was signed in 2012 out of Melbourne, Australia at the age of 16 and is in his eighth season of pro ball but he missed 2015 and 2016 due to Tommy John surgery. Thorpe, the 6’2″ lefty was the Twins minor league Pitcher of the Year last season. I would expect Thorpe to make his major league debut with the Twins in 2019.
Wings’ Thorpe ties career high … again
Did you know?
That in the Twins GameNotes there is all kinds of good information for you Twins fans that you are missing out on if you fail to check them out. Here are some things you missed out on if you did not check them today. The Twins do a great job on these notes, don’t miss them.
The Twins enter today with the third best winning percentage in baseball at .609, trailing only Tampa Bay (.640, 16-9) and Seattle (.621 – 18-11). Their 14 wins through the first 23 games is their best start through 23 since going 15-8 in 2010, additionally, the Twins have gone 6-4 at home this season.
The Twins have seen 3.68 pitches-per-plate appearance this season, the lowest ratio in baseball; the highest in baseball is Seattle at 4.12…they have also seen the fewest number of total pitches at 3,212, the next closest being Pittsburgh with 3,412 Jonathan Schoop ranks second in baseball in fewest pitches-per-PA with 3.11. The Twins have struck out 166 times this season, only the Angels (158) have struck out fewer.
The Twins have hit 42 home runs so far through 23 games, tied for most in club history through their first 23 – also 42 in 1964. The Twins are on pace to hit 295 home runs, which would pass their club record of 225, set in 1963. The MLB record is 267, done by New York-AL last season. The Twins rank tied for fifth in baseball in home runs, despite playing in the fewest games, they rank third in at-bats-per-home run (18.79).
MLB could become America’s pastime again if they …
The 2019 Forbes MLB team valuations are out and as always they are an interesting read. The average operating income for a MLB team in 2014 was $21 million and just four years later in 2018 it was $39.7 million per team. Every single MLB team is worth at least $1 billion.
Baseball Team Values 2019_ Yankees Lead League At $4.6 Billion
As much as I disagree that MLB players are overpaid, it seems that there is plenty of money to go around for ownership and the players. The only part of baseball that seems to get the short-end of the stick is the fans, who are forced to pay higher and higher prices every year for tickets and concessions.
Twins minor league players of the week are Cabbage & Graterol
Low A Cedar Rapids Kernels outfielder Trey Cabbage and AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos right-handed pitcher Brusdar Graterol are the Twins minor league Player and Pitcher of the Week.
The soon to be 22 year old Cabbage hit .333 in 27 plate appearances this past week with a triple, three home runs, nine RBI and scored eight times. Cabbage also walked six times and struck out the same number of times. Cabbage was drafted by the Twins in the fourth round of the 2015 June Amateur Draft out of Grainger High School in Rutledge, Tennessee as a third baseman but is currently playing corner outfield positions. Andrew Vasquez a LHP remains the only player drafted by the Twins in 2015 to make an appearance in the big leagues to this point. I would expect that Cabbage will be moving up to the A+ Miracles soon.
Graterol made the start for the Blue Wahoos on Tuesday at Biloxi, pitching 7 shutout innings with one hit, one walk and eight strikeouts. The 20-year-old Calabozo, Venezuela native has gone 1-0, 0.52 ERA (17.1 IP, 1 ER) with six walks, 18 strikeouts and a .121 opponent batting average in three starts for the Wahoos this season.
According to MLB Pipeline Graterol is the Twins third best overall prospect and top pitching prospect who is on a fast track to Minnesota. The Twins signed Graterol out of Venezuela when he was 16 years old for $150,000 as part of their 2014 international class. He was just a teen throwing in the high 80s at the time, nothing special. In February of 2015, they assigned him to the Dominican Summer League. He lasted four starts until he tore his UCL and underwent Tommy John surgery. Here is the rest of the story.
Twins Minor League Report, 4-21-19
Another occurrence of strange but true
This past Thursday Ryne Harper pitched 3.1 innings of solid relief against the Toronto Blue Jays at Target Field giving his team a chance to come back and win the game. The Twins didn’t come back to win the game but the 31-year-old rookie pitcher did his share.
Twins relief pitchers have pitched 3 or more innings in a game 1,787 times since 1961. From 1961-1969 Twins relievers did it 282 times, in the 70’s they did it 475 times, in the 80’s they did it 388 times, in the 90’s they did it 358 times, in the 2000’s Twins relievers did it 161 times and from 2010 through yesterday it has been done 123 times and to be fair, some of these occurrences starting in 2018 are “primary pitchers” following an “opener”.
The longest Twins relief appearance took place back on May 25, 1975 when Ray Corbin relieved Vic Albury after just two outs when the Detroit Tigers jumped on Albury for three first inning runs at Metropolitan Stadium and manager Frank Quilici had seen enough. Corbin pitched the next 10.1 innings allowing just two runs (one earned) on seven hits and four walks along with four strikeouts. The game was tied at 4-4 after five innings until the Tigers scored an unearned run off Corbin (Corbin’s error) in the top of the 11th inning to take a 5-4 lead. In the bottom of the 11th Tiger pitcher John Hiller walked Steve Brye and Larry Hisle followed with a two-run home run and the Twins walked off the Tigers 6-5 with Ray Corbin getting the well deserved win. Just four days earlier Corbin had pitched 6.1 innings of relief.
As irony would have it, just over a month later on June 30th the Twins were facing the California Angels at the Met and the Twins started Ray Corbin. Before Corbin could retire a single Angel batter he gave up five straight singles and John Doherty followed with a three-run homer, the only home run he would hit that season and the Angels were up 6-0 and Twins skipper Frank Quilici sent Corbin to the showers and called for Vic Albury. Albury held the Angels scoreless for 8 innings before running into trouble in the ninth when he gave up four runs but only one earned run on three hits and an error. Albury pitched 9 innings of relief allowing the one earned run on six hits and seven walks while striking out four batters and ended up with a no decision for his days work as the Angels beat the Twins 10-3.
Twins relievers have pitched seven or more innings in a game a total of 33 times. Ray Corbin and Tom Burgmeier each did it on three occasions. It has been a long time since it was done last, 34 years ago Dennis Burtt was the last Twins pitcher to pitch seven or more innings of relief when he did it in October of 1985 in a 8-6 Twins loss to the Indians at the Metrodome.
Here is a list of games in which a Minnesota Twins reliever pitched seven or more innings.
It appears that it is just not starting pitchers that are pitching fewer innings in each start, it looks like relievers don’t stay in games as long either.
Twins minor league players of the week – Blankenhorn & Smeltzer
The first 2019 Twins position player of the week is A+ Fort Myers Miracles infielder Travis Blankenhorn. Blankenhorn who is playing his fifth season of pro ball appeared in six games this past week hitting .300 with 6 hits in 24 PA’s including a double, a home run and 2 RBI. Blankenhorn also walked four times. The 22-year-old Blankenhorn has already played second and third base as well as the left field this season.
Travis Blankenhorn was the Minnesota Twins third round draft choice in the 2015 June amateur draft. So far the only Twins draft choice to reach the big leagues from that draft is 32nd round selection LHP Andrew Vasquez.
The first 2019 Twins pitcher of the week is LHP Devin Smeltzer of the AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos. In his second start of the 2019 season Smeltzer threw 8.1 shutout innings allowing just 3 hits and 1 walk while striking out 8 and earning the win on just 85 pitches (65 strikes). So far this season Smeltzer is 2-0 in 3 starts and has allowed just one earned run in 18 innings on 9 hits, 3 walks, and 21 strikeouts.
Devin Smeltzer was a Los Angeles Dodgers 5th round pick in the 2016 June Amateur draft and traded to Minnesota along with outfielder Luke Raley, second baseman Logan Forsythe in the Brian Dozier deal on July 31, 2018. The Twins used Smeltzer in relief last season at Chattanooga after acquiring him from the Dodgers but this season he is doing what he likes best and that is starting.
KIllebrew didn’t let shift bother him
Here is an interesting clipping I took from the May 3, 1969 edition of the Sporting News that relates to a hot topic in 2019, infield shifts. It makes me wonder why Harmon Killebrew could handle it back then and today’s players seem to struggle with it. You didn’t think that “shifts” were new did you? I don’t think anyone even used the word analytics and computers back then.
Make sure you follow the 1969 Twins on the On This Day in Twins History page.
Tyler Austin traded to the San Francisco Giants
The Twins announced today that they have traded first baseman Tyler Austin to the San Francisco Giants and received 22-year old minor league outfielder Malique Ziegler in return.
Ziegler was a Giants 22nd round pick in the June 2016 amateur draft and started his pro career that same year in the Arizona Rookie League. Ziegler a right-handed outfielder started this season with the Advanced A league San Jose Giants but the Twins have not announced as yet where he will play. Speed seems to be Ziegler’s game but you can’t steal first base and his career .245 average needs to improve.
Austin who is 27, was acquired from the New York Yankees along with pitcher Luis Rijo at the trade deadline last season in the Lance Lynn trade. Austin appeared in 35 games in 2018 and in 2 games this season for the Twins and hit for a .236 average with 9 home runs while striking out 45 times in 127 AB’s.
Former Minnesota Twins pitcher Greg Booker passes away at age 58
Gregory Scott Booker was born in Burlington, North Carolina on June 22, 1960 and after a courageous fight with melanoma passed away at the age of 58 on March 30, 2019. Greg Booker was a 10th round pick in the 1981 amateur draft by the San Diego Padres and signed by Kelly McKeon. Booker is the son-in-law of “Trader Jack” McKeon and brother-in-law of Kasey McKeon and Kelly McKeon.
Greg Booker, a 6’6″ right-handed pitcher started his big league career in 1981 in the San Diego Padres organization and made his major league debut on September 11, 1983 after putting up relatively mediocre minor league pitching numbers. Booker spent all or parts of seven seasons (1983-1989) with the San Diego Padres and made an appearance in the 1984 NLCS and the 1984 World Series before being traded by his father-in-law Jack McKeon to the Minnesota Twins on June 29, 1989 for pitcher Freddie Toliver.
The 30-year-old Booker was sent to AAA Portland after being acquired by Minnesota and then in September the Twins called him up and he appeared in six games pitching a total 8.2 innings with no decisions and a 4.15 ERA. After the 1989 season ended Booker became a free agent and signed with the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs released Booker prior to the 1990 season and the San Francisco Giants signed him a few days later and he appeared in just two games as a Giant and pitched in his final big league game on May 26, 1990.